succeed at all costs, without realizing what it’s costing you in time, energy, and relationships.

strive for perfection, forgetting that perfection isn’t possible!

be the best when you’re not actually in competition with others.

focus on marks, forgetting that they’re not the only thing that counts! Your experiences and learning process, and the personal troubles you’ve gone through, don’t show up in your marks, but they are just as important.

WHERE DOES PERFORMANCE PRESSURE COME FROM?

From yourself. You can demand that you be the best, be disappointed if your average isn’t as high as you wanted, or be hard on yourself if you don’t win first prize in an athletic competition.

From others. For example, your parents, who really want you to succeed in areas they failed in at your age. Or coaches, who push you to perform when you only want to have fun.

HOW CAN I MANAGE PERFORMANCE PRESSURE?

Get to know yourself! Where does the pressure in your life come from? What physical and psychological signs tell you that you’re tense or stressed out? What can you do to relax and stay calm when you’re under pressure?

Set your own standards for success. What are your standards for feeling successful and proud of yourself? Which is more important: getting a good mark or doing the things you like?

Assess the importance of other people's opinions. Do you feel the overwhelming need to please? When you have to make a choice, whose is the most important opinion — yours or someone else's?

Be clear about your own expectations. Are your goals realistic? Can you meet your objectives? Will that satisfy you?

Take care of yourself! Are you too hard on yourself? Do you treat yourself in ways you’d never put up with from someone else?

Learn how to learn! Get back to the basic reason for going to school — to learn, to see what you want to be in life.